City is giving you a heads up

VERNON – Now that we are back on standard time, and it’s dark for the commute home from work or school, the City of Vernon is asking drivers, cyclists and pedestrians to keep their heads up.

The Heads Up campaign is an effort to raise awareness about the increased risk of crashes.

“Pedestrians and cyclists are advised to keep heads up for drivers and to be seen, be safe, and be lit,” city spokesperson Tanya Laing Gahr says in a media release. “Pay attention and keep heads up at intersections and avoid distractions like texting. Stop, look and listen and make eye contact with drivers before you cross.”

Drivers aren’t off the hook.

Laing Gahr asks those behind the wheel to “keep theirs heads up for pedestrians and cyclists… make eye contact with pedestrians and cyclists.”

She says it’s important to pay attention, especially around intersections where most collision happen.

“Watch for other vehicles slowing down around you as they may be yielding to a pedestrian and follow traffic signals rather than pedestrian signals, which aren’t always timed to traffic lights.”

The City of Vernon has more safety tips on its website.

To contact the reporter for this story, email Howard Alexander at halexander@infonews.ca or call 250-491-0331. To contact the editor, email mjones@infonews.ca or call 250-718-2724.